1. Field of the Invention
This disclosure is related to the field of water level alert and flood detector systems. Specifically, this disclosure is related to simple, lightweight, portable water level detectors that can be permanently or removeably attached to any surface or terrain, the system providing a warning should the water reach a predetermined and potentially dangerous level.
2. Description of Related Art
There are few places on Earth where people need not be concerned about flooding. Any place where rain falls is vulnerable, although rainfall is not the only cause of flooding. Floods and the water damage caused by flooding are among the most frequent and costly natural disasters and can develop in a myriad of different ways. One common way floods occur is when rivers or streams overflow their banks from excessive rain, a ruptured dam or levee, or rapid ice melt.
While some floods can develop over hours or days, giving individuals some time to prepare or evacuate, others, commonly known as “flash floods,” can develop quickly and without warning. These flash floods can be extremely dangerous, and often are marked by a dangerous wall of roaring water carrying rocks, mud and other debris.
The moving water which results from floods has awesome destructive power. Usually structures are poorly equipped to withstand flood water's strength. In extreme cases, bridges, houses, trees and cars can be picked up and carried off, personal possessions and property can be destroyed, and even animals and individuals can be harmed. For example, in the United States floods do approximately about 6 billion dollars worth of damage and kill about 140 people every year.
Because of the danger to lives and property posed by flooding, there is a need for a simple, lightweight, portable flood alert and alarm system that can activate a warning means to notify an individual prior to a potentially disastrous or dangerous flood. Such an alarm system would give individuals sufficient warning to vacate a potentially dangerous flood area and move their personal possessions and property to a safer and more secure area. Stated differently, there is a need for a portable device that can be moved and utilized in homes, on camping trips, or at any location where there is a possibility of flooding so that individuals in the area of the potential flood can be warned within a sufficient amount of time so as to protect and move themselves and their valuables.
While there are a number of devices available for warning of the onset of a flood in areas prone to flooding, many of these devices are problematic. First, many of these devices are not lightweight or easily portable. Accordingly, it can be cumbersome and unwieldy to transport and place the detectors in at-risk flood areas. In addition, many of these devices are expensive and/or have a complex structure that is difficult to understand, set-up, and program. Another problem with these devices currently utilized in the art is that they often malfunction. Many of these devices are float-based systems. Typically, these float systems detect a rising level of water, or some other liquid, and sound an alarm to alert others of the rising liquid condition. In some of these systems, the buoyant floats contain a sensor which, when raised or otherwise moved by the presence of flood water, closes an electrical circuit when it reaches a certain predefined point, thereby engaging the alarm. The problems with these sensor float activated systems can be numerous. First, water present in the flood situation can impair or short circuit the electrical circuit. In these situations, even if the float is raised and an alarm should be triggered, no alarm will sound because the circuit will not be completed. This damage generally renders the device useless. Second, in addition to water damage, debris or other detritus in the flood water can become stuck to the float or the circuit. This debris can catch the float, preventing it from moving with the rising flood waters, or it can become caught in the sensor or circuit, preventing a complete connection and sounding of the alarm. Finally, many of these systems are either constructed to alert for gradual flooding or flash flooding, they do not adequately monitor and alert a user to either type of flooding. Thus, these currently utilized systems are susceptible to damage and being put out of commission by excessive flooding.
Accordingly, there is a need for the development of a portable, self-contained flood alarm which alleviates the shortcomings of the alarms of the prior art and offers an easy-to-use and reliable flood and water level alarm which will adequately warn users of potential flood conditions and possibly save their personal belongings, equipment, and lives. The device and system disclosed herein achieves its intended purposes, objectives, and advantages over the prior art through a new, useful, and nonobvious combination of component elements, which is simple to use, contains a minimum number of functioning parts, is economical to manufacture and assemble, and is not as susceptible to the problems inherent to the structure and design of the flood warning systems of the prior art.